Lilly Through the Looking Glass
by Denaliyasha
Summary: Contemplations, reconciliations, and one way mirrors. Probably kinda out of character, but still good.


Disclaimer: Do you honestly think that it's mine?

A/N: My take on the episode. On to the fiction. Forgive me if it's out of character (in fact, I'm sure it is, some of it) because I haven't seen that many episodes. This just sorta... took hold.

**Lilly Through the Looking Glass**

He watched her, through the glass that to her seemed a mirror. He could feel her eyes boring into him through that glass, even though he knew she couldn't really know where his eyes were. The story unfolding in the room washed over him, registering in some corner of his brain, but he spent more time concentrating on his partner.

Her hair seemed completely out of control, but he knew she tried to fix it. Although he knew he shouldn't be thinking about it, he liked her hair better than her sister's. Her face, so pale it looked almost powdered, enhanced the color of her eyes. He found himself fixated on her mouth, which stood out strongly against the whiteness of her face.

"Your lies weren't the worst." The sheer proximity of Lilly to the glass pulled his mind back to her voice. Her hands were on the sill and she was staring straight at him, her mouth quirked into a grimace.

When she walked out of interrogation, he followed. "What was that about?"

"What?" She spun on her heels, turning to face him. Her eyes were flashing fire, and it shook him up a little.

"You've been doing this all day! If you're going to drop it, fine, but you aren't dropping it! You've been shooting daggers at me all day!"

She shook her head, looking away for a moment as though in disbelief. "You lied to my face!"

He was too angry to notice the hurt look in her eyes. "You cornered me in front of everyone! What was I supposed to say, 'yeah, sure, I'm dating her' in front of the boss?"

"Oh, for…" she put one hand on her temples and turned away to collect herself. When she looked back at him, he was startled to notice the hint of wetness in her eyes. "You couldn't have just said so? Why did you lie to me? You didn't tell me, damn it! I had to drag it out of you!" She sighed. "I think I'm going to take the afternoon off. And maybe put in for a new partner, since I can't trust the one I've got."

She walked towards the door. He could only watch in shocked disbelief as Lilly disappeared from sight. Ask for a new partner? Why? Because he'd lied about dating her sister? That made no… actually, it made perfect sense, now that he thought about it. Other people might understand, but Lilly was all about honesty. She told the truth and expected others to do so. He knew that. On some level, he had known that lying about it would make it worse, but he hadn't been able to say it…

Why was that, though? Why did it bother him so much that she knew? Her sister was intelligent, funny, easy to talk to, and best of all she made no demands, not like… oh, dear god, he was comparing her to Lilly! He was sure neither of them would appreciate the comparison. Why would he do that, though? Why hold her up to her sister, unless… unless he was trying to convince himself that Kris was better than Lilly.

By this point he was sitting down, leaning back in his swivel chair. Was dating Kris worth losing his friend, and maybe his partner? Even if they still worked together, it would always be hanging over their heads. She'd never forget it, and she wouldn't let him.

After a few moments of contemplation, he came to a startling conclusion. No, dating Lilly's sister was not worth losing Lilly over. Now he just had to fix this whole mess that he'd created…

* * *

He knocked on her door, hearing the sounds of the TV shut off as he did so. "Hold on, please!" He could hear her moving to the door, and then it was opened.

"What are you doing here?"

He shifted from one foot to the other. "Hey, Lilly. Can I come in?"

"Fine." She stepped back, letting him into the apartment.

He stood awkwardly by the couch. "I, uh… I broke up with Kris."

Her mouth formed a small 'o' of surprise. "I bet she wasn't so happy about that."

"Not really, but I think she understood."

"What do you mean?"

"I think she understood that I valued your friendship more than I valued her."

Lilly blinked several times, rapidly, and sat down. "Oh."

"And I'm really sorry I lied. I know I shouldn't have, but I was just so angry with you for backing me into a corner about it. It was stupid, and I'm sorry."

"Apology accepted, I guess." She looked up at him, and he suddenly got the impression that this time, she was watching him through a one way mirror. Her eyes gave away nothing, but took everything in. It was a little disturbing, actually.

"So, we cool?" She nodded, and he relaxed a little. "And we're still partners?"

"Only if you don't lie to me."

"I can do that." He smiled. Problem solved.

For now.

A/N: So it's a little bit more "let's have them make up" than "let's have them making out in under three hundred words." Review, please!


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